1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a device for assisting one in tying a double bow knot. It particularly relates to an educational device for teaching a young or handicapped child to tie his shoes.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Tying knots requires considerable manual dexterity in addition to understanding of the steps involved in tying a particular knot. Learning to tie a double bow knot as is required in tying one's shoe laces is a difficult task for a young child. And teaching the child to tie such a knot is not only difficult but frustrating as well, as any parent well knows.
In tying a double bow knot in one's shoe laces, one must first manipulate the lace ends to form a simple overhand knot, next a so-called "bunny ear" loop is then formed with one of the ends and that loop is held while manipulating the other end to form a second loop. The two bunny ear loops are then pulled in opposite directions to one another to complete the knot.
Most children are capable after a short time to make the initial knot, that is the rather simple overhand knot. However, some children, particularly those who are handicapped in one way or another, have a rather difficult time in understanding and mastering the formation of the double bow knot. As a result, some children depend for a rather long time on others, e.g., an older brother or sister, a parent, or even a teacher to tie his shoe laces.
Where the child is handicapped, the tying of one's shoe laces may be difficult and frustrating at any age. A primary difficulty lies not only in understanding and mastering the principal of tying the double bow knot, but also in the lack of manual dexterity to form a loop in the one end of the lace, and to hold it in one hand, while manipulating the other end of the shoe lace with the other hand to form a second loop, and ultimately the double bow knot.
Over the years, various teaching aids and learning devices have been developed as an aid in teaching children how to tie certain knots. One such a device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,624,957. In that patent, the educational device disclosed acts as an instrumentality for teaching a child how to tie various common knots, including the double bow knot. However, the device can not be used to assist a child in tying his own shoe laces. It merely provides facility in the tying of knots.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,017,984 discloses an educational device for teaching one to lace and tie shoes. Basically the device comprises a pair of panel members hingedly secured on a base to simulate the side flaps of a lace-up shoe. The ends of the shoe laces used are differently colored to match certain eyelets in the flap whereby the "shoe" is laced by threading the shoe string through eyelets of the same color. Cross-lines of the same colors are placed on the base member to direct crossing of the lace ends and a spot directs placement of a finger to loop the first half of a bow.
Although both of these educational devices disclosed in the prior art are quite useful in teaching not only various common knots but the actual lacing and tying of a shoe, the child still ties these knots on other objects, not his own shoe. Neither of the devices disclosed can be used directly in the tying of one's own shoe laces. As a result, it is sometimes quite difficult for the child, particularly if handicapped in some way, to translate what he has learned to the shoe on his own foot.